As an Ohio State student, Cullen Buie has learned hard work and dedication is the key to success and recognition.
“Sometimes I feel that people think I am Superman; it downplays the hard work I put into my education. Many nights I have spent in the library up real late to achieve my goals,” Buie said. “All people see are the results.”
The result is a senior in mechanical engineering, a member in both Tau Beta Phi and Lamba Phi honor societies, and a recipient of various awards and scholarships.
Such a powerful turn out alone is an accomplishment considering Buie’s high school years were not as successful.
The Shaker Heights native said he took advantage of sports in high school rather than the classroom.
“I didn’t think academics were important since I wanted to play sports. It wasn’t until after I saw how hard college athletes have to work that I gained a new perspective on things,” Buie said.
Besides the reality check Buie received from too much involvement in athletics, he gave credit to life disappointments for his motivation to do better in college.
During his senior year of high school he received a letter denying his request to enroll into the Stanford University undergraduate program.
“I was on the border line of acceptance; with a little more work, I would have gotten accepted,” he said.
As successful as Buie’s life may seem now, he didn’t come to OSU prepared for mechanical engineering.
“I had no idea what I wanted to major in. I wrote down pre-med because it sounded good,” he said.
It wasn’t until Buie, a member of the Minority Achievement Committee scholars program, came to Columbus to spend some time with his brother that his life would take a turn.
“The MAC scholars program was featured in Newsweek, and because of the publicity, many people wanted to meet me. A woman I met named Tonya told me that I should consider mechanical engineering,” he said. “I didn’t even know what mechanical engineering was.”
Buie was then introduced to Minnie McGee, an assistant dean for the College of Engineering.
“I talked with McGee for a good hour or so. She saw something in me and offered me a chance to be in the preface program,” he said
The purpose of the program is to point out exceptional students and prepare them for engineering at OSU. The programs allows students to enroll in preparation courses; however, they are not given credit upon completion. Instead students can receive scholarships for good performance.
“I took her up on the offer. I had no major, therefore, I had nothing to lose,” Buie said.
McGee is not the only OSU faculty member who saw something in Buie.
“Since I have known Cullen he has always had a mission,” said Larry Williamson Jr., director of the Office of Minority Affairs.
The National Society of Black Engineers is a premier organization serving blacks in engineering and technology. The organization supports and promotes the aspirations of university and pre-college students and technical professionals.
Buie said not only was the meaning of the organization important, but the role he served as 2002-2003 president with NSBE held value as well.
“I have never been president of anything. Even in high school, I was very active, but I wasn’t into leadership,” he said.
David Moody, a junior in mechanical engineering, has worked in NSBE with Buie since his freshman year.
“Working with Cullen is like working with an all-star. Cullen is very confident in everything he does. He doesn’t want to win – he expects to win,” Moody said.
Coming into a major that was predominantly studied by white males was not a new experience for Buie.
“I went to a high school that was 50 percent black and 50 percent white. Still, I was the only black student in my calculus class out of 60 other students, he said.”
Buie said even with his lengthy resume, he still feels as though his race is and always will be the first thing others see.
“My honors class was a cold class. No one ever spoke. There were only 15 students in the class, and yet, when the course happened to come up outside of class and I would speak about it, the students I saw daily would say things like, ‘Are you in that class?'” Buie said.
“It wasn’t until I won various awards that people started to know me by Cullen,” he said.
Buie received the Top Junior Award and second place in Engineering Sciences in the 2002 Denman Undergraduate Research Forum.
“My first responsibility is to other black students and people, because no one will look out for us,” he said. “If I am here, there is no reason for other black students in mechanical engineering not accomplish what they want to.”
Buie, who received his acceptance letter into the Stanford University grad school program, said it’s never too late achieve your goals. He is living proof.
